The 7th (Friday) of November, was an important day for metal fans. The Great Indian Rock fest was headlined by two Norwegian bands Sahg and the mighty Satyricon at the Palace grounds, Bangalore. They were supported by talented Indian bands like Slingshot, Rainbow Bridge and Extinct Reflections. I was waiting for 18:30 hrs, so that I could flee from office. I reached the venue at 19:00 hours and was late by around 90 minutes and missed the performance by Indian bands. I believe Extinct Reflections did well. My friends reached well within time for the concert and were looking forward to meet me there.

I reached the entrance for security and ticket check. That place looked like a small planet full of metalheads. Sahg had just begun to play their first song and the massive crowd went bizarre. The crowd density started to increase as I slowly progressed towards the stage to get a closer view. Their guitars were down tuned and produced a crushing heavy sound from the towering speakers which gave a thumping feel to the heart. As soon as the sound got heavier, the moshpits and head banging sessions followed, which I enjoyed he most. The pyrotechnics (Flames or fire works) incorporated on stage were one of the best I have seen live. Overall Sahg were good (Especially the guitarist), they played some memorable tracks and communicated well with the audience.

Once Sahg finished, I tried to locate my friends in crowd and managed to do it quite easily. We chatted and discussed the performance by Indian bands and Sahg as the stage was being set up for Satyricon. I was very tempted to move further into the crowd and occupy a place right in front of the stage, but finally decided against it as we were fairly ahead and comfortable. Over 30 minutes were consumed just for the stage set up and sound check and the crowd began to agitate. The hunger of music started to grow overwhelmingly as we chanted “Start the f***ing music” and began to hurl water bottles on stage. Just before things could get worse a mute announcement was made and few minutes later evil blue lights flashed, smoke released and a growling sound was heard.

It was clear that Satyricon are all set to set the stage ablaze. Frost (Drummer) sat behind his kit followed by the keyboardist and the guitarists (all dressed in black). Finally Satyr (Founder-Lead vocals, guitars) arrived and the fans howled loudly as he waved to all of us. Without wasting much time they started playing guitars loud and fast, blast beats from Frost, and the low pitched growl by Satyr was an absolute treat. The two guitarists and the bassist head-banged with conviction, they were in complete synchronization with each other and played in awe of excellence throughout the show. All songs were epic and we indulged in moshing and head-banging for every song played by them, which made the show all the more violent and energetic. Satyr interacted extremely well with the audience by thanking us and appreciated our energy after every song performed by them. He even clicked a few snaps for the press back in Norway, which have us gesturing in unison (\m/ \m/) and celebrating the metal culture.

In the end, Satyr addressed the fans and thanked all of them for following their music with dedication as the Satyricon flag was waved in triumph. They entire crew waved out and the exceptional Frost (Drummer) hurled his drum sticks at the audience as a mark of appreciation. That was the end of yet another, truly memorable day in the history of Rock concerts at Bangalore.